(I Just) Died In Your Arms – Cutting Crew | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#1 for 2 weeks); 1987
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
Like many working musicians, Cutting Crew’s lead singer Nick Van Eede’s fortunes rollercoasted prior to his turn in the fame spotlight. During one of the money-less times, he ended up living with a musician buddy whose house was full of instruments of their craft.
One day Nick was playing around with said toys and out came (I Just) Died In Your Arms – a phrase Nick once murmured to a girlfriend while they were making love – along with lyrics and melody.
Sometime thereafter, Nick found himself in the studio laying down his spontaneously composed song. Despite some difficulties capturing the essential ingredients from Nick’s demo, everything ultimately came together.
The result was a #1 U.S. hit. As for the band’s unusual name, that came from a newspaper article about Queen recording a new album in which the group was referred to as a “cutting crew.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Terry Brown
- John Jansen
- Cutting Crew
Lyrics Written by:
- Nick Van Eede
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).